BAKU: Azerbaijan Tourism Board (ATB), the national promotion body designed to support the growth of Azerbaijan’s tourism industry, will be hosting a special tourism buyers event this April. Taking place in the capital on April 29, Baku, the Travel Business Azerbaijan event will bring together local and international tourism professionals in hopes to forge partnerships and profitable business deals. Organised by Azerbaijan Tourism Board and supported by the State Tourism Agency, the event is a first of its kind in the Caucasus country, welcoming over 400 industry professionals to establish direct communication while also serving as a platform to showcase…
Author: holidayweekly
DOHA: Qatar Airways has bought a $600 million stake in British Airways-owner IAG to increase its holding to 25.1%, advancing its strategy of building a global portfolio of airline investments. In an endorsement of the Anglo-Spanish group just weeks before its founder Willie Walsh steps down, Qatar said increasing its stake was evidence of its support for the company and its strategy. Qatar previously held 21.4% of IAG, which also owns Spanish carriers Iberia and Vueling and Ireland’s Aer Lingus. IAG’s share price has risen by 52% in the last six months. Shares in IAG were trading up 1.4% at…
While SpaceX has been working hard to deliver a safe, reliable method of transporting astronauts into space for NASA, there’s always been the question of how long it would take before any company, including SpaceX, embraced space tourism. There’s not a whole lot going on in the space tourism market at the moment, aside from big promises for the future, but SpaceX just confirmed that it won’t be left on the sideline when it comes to sending paying customers into the sky. The company says that it has agreed to fly four private individuals around the Earth in one of…
LONDON: The Government has been told to urgently rethink its immigration policy to avoid a ‘catastrophic’ impact on the UK hospitality industry. Ministers announced proposals to move to a point-based system from January 2021, with most oversea workers also required to earn at least £25,600 to qualify for a visa. Only those who earn 70 points will be allowed to work in the UK, which means businesses such as hotels and restaurants will no longer be able to bring in unskilled labour from other European countries. The Government has told businesses they need to end their dependency on cheap foreign…
TOULOUSE-FRANCE: EgyptAir has taken delivery of its first of 15 A320neo Family aircraft, on lease from AerCap, becoming the first airline in Africa and Middle East to operate both the A320neo and A220, the most modern and fuel-efficient single-aisle aircraft types. Alongside the A220, the A320neo will be an integral part of EgyptAir’s fleet modernization plan that will replace its existing ageing single aisle fleet. EgyptAir’s A320neo is powered by CFM Leap 1 engines and configured in a two-class cabin with 142 seats. This will include 16 business class seats offering a generous 48-inch seat pitch and an economy cabin…
BRUSSELS-BELGIUM: The Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) today addressed the European Parliament in the context of several high-level meetings aimed at placing tourism high on European Union’s agenda. Europe is the world’s most visited regions and home to international tourism leaders such as France, Spain or Italy, as well as leading outbound markets, like Germany. To mark the start of the new mandate of the European Commission, Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili was in Brussels for a series of high-level meetings. In a notable first, the head of the United Nations specialized agency for tourism met with Elisa Ferreira, the…
PARIS: French airports operator ADP, which operates Paris airports Roissy and Orly, has bought a 49% stake in India’s GMR Airports for $1.45 billion, ADP said on Thursday, February 20. GMR Airports has a portfolio of seven airports in three countries: India, the Philippines and Greece. ADP said the Delhi and Hyderabad airports in India and the Mactan-Cebu airport in the Philippines together handled a total of 102 million passengers in 2019. The four other airports, which had 22 million passengers in 2019, are either under development (Goa and Heraklion) or were recently won by GMR after a bidding process…
Written By Ch. Faisal Mahmood With the Grace of almighty Allah Pakistan’s tourism is full time on the path of revival. There is an influx of high-profile dignitaries who are mesmerized by the beautiful land scape of Pakistan. Last week Her Highness Princess Beatrice, a member of British royal family, and former prime ministers of Spain and Italy were in Pakistan for a ski trip. Their visit brought Pakistan once again in international limelight. Good for tourism Pakistan. Her Highness leads a ‘high level delegation’ on an adventurous heli-skiing trip and by doing this she endorsed Pakistan as the best…
WASHINGTON: Boeing said Tuesday that it found debris contaminating the fuel tanks of some 737 Max jets that it built in the past year but was unable to deliver to airline customers. A Boeing official said the debris was discovered in “several” planes but did not give a precise number. Boeing built about 400 undelivered Max jets before it temporarily halted production last month. The fuel tank debris was discovered during maintenance on parked planes, and Boeing said it immediately made corrections in its production system to prevent a recurrence. Those steps include more inspections before fuel tanks are sealed.…
MANAMA: Gulf Air, the national carrier of Bahrain, recently welcomed the chairman of the Association of Bahrain Travel and Tour Agents (ABTTA) Jehad Amin and members of the association to the airline’s headquarters in Muharraq. Guests from ABTTA met the airline’s executive management headed by its chief executive officer Krešimir Kučko as well as deputy chief executive officer Captain Waleed Al Alawi, chief commercial officer Vincent Coste and members of the commercial division at Gulf Air. Gulf Air’s team has presented its commercial strategy for the year 2020 and discussed ways of further strengthening the relationship and the two-way collaboration…